They have names such as "TeruTeru" and "Collateral Damage Studios", producing music and meeting fans. But they're not a band riding on the Korean wave or Japanese pop culture - they are creators of "doujinshi" (Japanese for self-published works), anime-inspired artworks.
Among the estimated 85,000 people who turned up at the recently concluded Anime Festival Asia 2011 (AFA 2011) held at Suntec City, were some young Singaporeans who have taken to expressing themselves through anime-inspired artworks.
Forget about the dress-up manga fans, the "doujinka" (creators of "doujinshi") have taken things one step further, creating independent fanworks based on Japanese anime and manga. "We don't make prints or boring things!" said Ume of TeruTeru, one of the handful of doujin groups.
The relatively new group is different from the rest as that they don't just focus on visual art, but music as well. "We both had an interest in doujin music," said Zach, when asked about how the group started.
The resident composer of TeruTeru takes care of scoring the group's music while the "fairer" half of TeruTeru, provides the vocals and illustrations for their works. "There are very few doujin music circles in Singapore, so we wanted to be one of the first to do it. We liked doujin music, so we wanted to try our hand at it," said the Singaporean who prefers to go by her manga moniker, Ume.
The duo who have so far released a music CD and various artworks of popular anime such as "Ano Hana", "Steins;Gate" and "Mawaru Penguindrum", are however selective in their choice of works.
Ume lists with a laugh, "things that are very costly to produce" while Zach chips in, "Usually we just break even, we don't make any money."Fortunately, reveals Ume, doujin groups and amateur artists get "a stage to perform" at various Japanese cultural events like AFA, A.C.M.E (A Certain Magical Event) and EOY (End Of Year) which also offer a chance to meet new people and "hang out a lot with the other doujin groups".
It is at such events that bigger doujin groups like Collateral Damage Studios (CDS), get an opportunity to meet their fans and other like-minded artists. "Events are still the time when everyone meets up," said KC "Komicer" Ng, projects manager of CDS.
He added: "We don't just have Singaporean artists. Amongst us, we also have an Indonesian artist and it is during events like (AFA) that she can actually afford to come down (to Singapore) to meet up with the rest of the group... When we meet up, we are able to work together face-to-face, rather than through the Internet."CDS, which was formed in 2007, is dedicated to promoting artwork and digital illustrations in Singapore.
It is so well-known in the niche circle that it attracts the occasional job application even though it is not a commercial company. "It is tricky," said KC about becoming professional. "It can be done, but the thing about going pro is that you need to kind of abandon your past. It's very different operating as a pro group as opposed to a doujin group. Despite having qualms, it does appear that going pro has been given much thought.
"As a doujin group, you don't pay anyone, we are all in it voluntarily and we share the cost and the profit. As a pro group, firstly there is the issue of salary. Secondly, we can't do a lot of things" as KC points out.
"Most people, what they like to do is to draw the (anime) characters which they really like. That's fine for a doujin group but you can't do that as a pro group, not without (infringing) on intellectual property."
Both CDS and TeruTeru admit that they are not too concerned about any possible infringements in their fanworks although they do keep the issue of copyrights at the top of their minds.
"The truth is, we are not really doing anything to avoid (copyrights infringements)" said KC, adding that the reason why doujin is to a certain extent tolerated in Japan, is because it is seen as a form of marketing.
"It provides exposure to a particular franchise to the general public... And that can be applied elsewhere around the world as well... We've got people who come here and ask: 'What's this book about?' and when they read it, that's when they get exposed to a particular series and might actually go on and buy official merchandise from that particular series."
TeruTeru's Ume echoed similar sentiments, "Usually in Singapore, we don't care (about copyrights)... From the way I see it, they just try not to notice this sort of thing because it gives them business," she said. But if and when the time comes when copyrights is an issue, KC simply quips, "we'll just move on, perhaps to do more original works".
There's still room for budding amateur artists in Singapore to either join or form a doujin group, and the first step is really, just taking the first, brave step. "The easiest way to get popular is through the Internet" said Ume.
"If you get popular on the Internet first, you gain recognition for your work. People who know your work will be more willing to buy your artworks."As KC succintly puts it, "Don't hesitate. You must have the courage to take the plunge".